Ohio officials note progress after exotics release

ANN SANNERAssociated Press Published: October 18, 2012 3:06 AM

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- A year after a suicidal owner in Ohio released lions, bears and dozens of his other exotic animals, just 17 owners have registered their creatures with the state under a tougher law.

Officials don't know how many other owners are out there, but they believe there are more than those who have come forward.

Still, they aren't discouraged by the number. They say at least Ohio's law now requires owners to tell them how many animals they have, where they are, and who their veterinarian is, among other details.

"We had nothing before. Now, we do," said state Sen. Troy Balderson, a Zanesville Republican who sponsored the legislation.

Ohio's restrictions on exotic animals had been among the nation's weakest. State lawmakers worked with a renewed sense of urgency to strengthen the law after an owner last fall released 50 creatures from an eastern Ohio farm in Zanesville before he committed suicide.

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The law gives owners some immediate requirements, such as installing their animals with microchips so they can be identified if they get lost or escape. Other details, such as the thickness of their animals' cages and certain caretaking standards are still being finalized. Gov. John Kasich recently appointed members of an advisory panel that will oversee those more specific rules.

The law also provides the state and law enforcement with more authority to intervene if owners aren't following the regulations.

Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz, who oversaw the response to the animals' release, says Ohio is "light years" from where it was on Oct. 18, when he and his officers were dispatched to Terry Thompson's farm.

Authorities killed 48 of Thompson's animals as a public safety measure. Two others were believed to have been eaten by other animals. An additional six animals were found in their cages and placed under quarantine at the Columbus zoo, where one died. In May, Thompson's widow picked up the remaining five animals and returned them to the farm.

Lutz said he has not received any calls or complaints since the animals have been back.

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One of the law's opponents says additional regulations aren't always the best answer.

State Sen. Kris Jordan, a Republican from Powell, voted against the new restrictions that cleared the Ohio Legislature in May. He said he saw the matter as a property rights issue, with the potential to hurt some breeders who have invested in the animals.

The law took effect last month. It bans people from buying and selling dangerous wild animals. People also are generally prohibited from trading or transferring ownership. And owners have to register them with the state's agriculture department by Nov. 5.

Other aspects of the law have yet to kick in. For instance, a permit process for owners won't begin until next October.

Current owners who want to keep their animals must obtain the new state-issued permit by Jan. 1, 2014. They must pass background checks, pay fees, obtain liability insurance or surety bonds, and show inspectors that they can properly contain the animal and care for it.

If owners are denied permits or can't meet the new requirements, the state can seize the animals.

Facing new regulations, several owners have moved tigers, lions and bears to out-of-state sanctuaries, which Lutz points to as progress.

Jordan isn't quite convinced. "I don't believe that these new standards will protect the citizens from the type of instance that we had a year ago," he said in an interview. "If an owner is going to act negligently and let his animals out to harm the neighborhood, he still has the ability to do that."